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Super Hoagie

Last week’s episode included a bit where Walt buys Superman and Wonder Woman UnderRoos. He talks Ming into wearing the Wonder Woman halter and panties. Please understand, these were, as the tag line goes, underwear that’s fun to wear, but Ming is a grown man and these were made to fit an 8-year-old girl. No matter how you do the math, something’s gotta give. Ming had one hell of a time getting into the underwear and an even worse time getting out.

If you’ve never had the pleasure of actually seeing an UnderRoos commercial, I beg of you, track one down online and watch it. As Bryan says in the episode…it is hypnotic, and I defy you to get that music out of your head after viewing.

Now, on to this week’s show.

First up, Wolverine claw. This was hand-tooled. I doubt it was mass-produced. It had no manufacturer’s markings, so this looked like a labor of love. I actually tried them on and someone could do SERIOUS damage to another person.

These actually sold fairly quickly after we bought them. They were too cool looking to stay in the Stash for too long.

Next up, the Flash of Two Worlds statue by DC Direct. While this was a well-sculpted statue, it was not truly sought after due to the crudity of the diaorama set-up. It was simply a flimsy piece of cardboard that attached to the back of the statue. It retailed for $195 when it was first released in 2005. We didn’t purchase this statue but Walt and Bryan did have a lot of fun with the guy who was trying to sell it.

Geek Note: This statue represents the story, Flash of Two Worlds, from Flash #123 which introduced the concept of a multiverse. This concept, while not unique to DC Comics, was used by DC very effectively to marry old and new storylines and heroes/heroines. For example, you could have Superman, active during WWII and also a younger Superman, active in our time, team up to fight two different versions of Lex Luthor.

All of this was wiped away with the Maxi-Series, Crisis on Infinite Earths, published in 1987. Written by Marv Wolfman and drawn by George Perez, this book streamlined the DC Universe into one, cohesive timeline. This would stand until Geoff Johns’ excellent Infinite Crisis which reintroduced the multiverse, now known as The New52.

I never thought that I would see an Amazing Fantasy 15 walk through our doors. The father and son selling it had inflated dreams of its value. I agree with Rob Bruce in that it was worth about $2,500-to us, given its condition. What viewers are truly unable to see is the amount of tape on the front cover which, in my opinion, drops a comic book down to an automatic 2.0, or Good condition.

The fact that this was such a significant issue — it introduced Spider-Man to the world for goodness sakes! — allows us to be a little lenient when it comes to grading. Even a poor copy is one hell of a find for an issue as scarce as this one. If we had purchased it, we could have possibly sold it for $4,500 – $5,000.

Unfortunately, we could not come to an agreement — they simply wanted too much money and wouldn’t budge from their $8,500 asking price. It’s too bad because even though it would have sat on a shelf for a long time, it would have added a little prestige to our book wall.

Finally, we have the Star Wars, Chewbacca model. The gentleman who brought this in was so likable that Walt even went UP on the asking price — something I’ve rarely ever seen him do. The gentleman in question dresses up as Captain America for various charitable functions and for Comic-Cons. He never charges a fee and does it for the pure joy it brings to the children. How can you NOT respect a guy like that?

The model itself was not especially interesting or collectible, but it does show that Walt has a bigger heart than he lets on. I wish I could tell you how many times we’ve had to turn people away with comics and toys that they think are valuable, but unfortunately aren’t. We usually send those folks over to Rob Bruce!

As for my sandwich, it is indeed on Readie’s lunch board. Next time you’re in town to visit the Stash and load up on comics and toys, stop in and have one. Ask for the Secret Stash Super Hero. Tell’em Mike sent ya.